“Our Faith in the Lord Jesus”

by Bruce J. Johnson

November 20, 2005

Scripture: Ephesians 1: 15-23

We are at that point in the college football season when attention is turned to the sport’s great rivalries. Indeed, the Wall Street Journal on Friday had a front page article in its Weekend Section titled “The Best of Enemies.” The article announced that yesterday marked “the beginning of the most intense period of college football rivalry games, a three weekend span where traditional match-ups take place such as THE GAME, Yale-Harvard, (Harvard won in triple overtime) or Ohio State- Michigan ( ticket price, by the way, was $285! And Ohio State won with a last minute touchdown!), and then a host of city and in state rivalries such USC and UCLA ($371), Florida- Florida State $377. Alabama – Auburn $392, Georgia-Georgia Tech.

I’m surprised that they didn’t mention the Branford-East Haven game or the Coventry-Cromwell match-ups for Turkey Day!

Another game they did mention, however, is the in-state rivalry of Oklahoma- Oklahoma State (bargain priced at $135 a ticket)—they play next Saturday and it is one of those games that no matter what the records are, (this year Oklahoma is 6-3 and State is 4-5) all that matters is who wins that game. It can make or break a season.

While reading that article, it just so happened that I remembered that one of Tony Campolo’s favorite stories involves that game. Want to hear it?

“In 1966, Randy Johnson, a nephew of President Lyndon B. Johnson, was the quarterback for Oklahoma State University. By the expert’s judgment, he proved to be a mediocre quarterback for a mediocre team. But mediocre or not, quarterbacks and teams at Oklahoma State could be lifted to legendary greatness if they could just beat their arch rival, the University of Oklahoma, at their annual meeting at the end of the season.

This particular year had not been a happy one for Randy or his team, and there seemed to be little hope for redemption as the clock was running out in their game with the University of Oklahoma. Oklahoma State was behind by six points. Rain was pouring down, but the mud-covered suits didn’t look half as bad as the battered, despairing faces of the State players.

As a gesture of goodwill, the Oklahoma State coach put in all the seniors for the last play of the game so they could end their college football careers on the playing field. He told Randy Johnson, the despairing quarterback, to call whatever play he wanted, since they were almost eighty yards from the goal line and had zilch chance of scoring.

The team huddled, and to the surprise of teammates, Randy called play 13. It was a trick play and had never been used before in a game. It had never been used for good reason--- it never even worked in practice.

Well, the impossible happened! Play 13 worked. Oklahoma State scored! Randy Johnson’s team won the game by one point. The fans went wild. As they carried Randy, the hero of the game, off the field, his coach called out to him, “Why in the world did you ever call play 13?

Randy answered, “Well, we were in the huddle, and I looked over and saw old Harry with tears running down his cheeks. It was his last college game and we were losing. And I saw that big 8 on his chest. Then I looked over and saw Ralph. And tears were running down his cheeks too. And I saw that big 7 on his jersey. So, in honor of those two heartbroken seniors, I added 8 and 7 together and called play 13!”

“But Randy,” the coach shouted back, “8 and 7 don’t add up to 13!”

Randy reflected for a moment and answered with a smirk, “You’re right coach! And if I had been as smart as you are, we would have lost the game!”

(Campolo, Following Jesus Without Embarrassing God, p. 127)

Well, you can just imagine what Campolo might do with that story.

What he loves about it is that it reminds him that the correct answers in life and for so many of life’s situations are not always the right answers.

Certainly when it comes to matters of faith, sometimes reason and cleverness don’t count for very much. Sometimes it is the so called ‘right’ answers that don’t add up or work. Sometimes the neat rational approach to things just won’t lead us to the answers we need in the struggles of life.

Each year, we set aside this Sunday as ‘Membership Sunday’--- seems appropriate for the Sunday before Thanksgiving--- a day to rejoice in the decision of some to join this church and at the same time, invite everyone to reflect not only on why we are all members and participants in this community of faith but on our mission as well. And, implicit in both functions is the obvious---we are saying that both Christian faith and community are the ‘correct answers’ for us within the context of what we face in life daily. And we are also the guardians of it, charged with the responsibility and privilege of making it known.

Generally speaking, these are not easy days for ‘the church.’ I was reading an article the other day about a flood of new translations of the bible that are coming out that are downsized and user friendly--- for people on the go! In particular the most recently released “The 100 Minute Bible.” It slashes the usual 780,000 words of God down to about 20,000 printed on fewer than 60 pages—it was released in Great Britain where weekly church attendance are in the high single digits at best. (WSJ 11/18/05, W13).

And here at home, one denomination after another reports the decline in church attendance, participation and revenues. And we are, I’m sure, all aware of the constant debate over the interpretation of the constitutional issue of separation of church and state--- an issue that has the net effect of sequestering the church from every day life and muting its message. Some maintain that we are as a society becoming --- increasingly—secularized.

Indeed, the state has done it again--- in this year’s Thanksgiving Proclamation--- which is so fundamentally LACKING from the original intent of the holiday:

“I urge all our citizens to join me in expressing our deepest gratitude to those who touch our lives everyday and in extending a healing hand of hope to those who need it most.”

And it is in the face of this that Paul’s words serve as a reminder of who were are and why we are here. Each of his letters is written to the church and speaks of its calling for that time and their situation. This morning’s lesson is from Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus and we yet again get the sense of Paul’s affection for those who formed that first church in Ephesus—as result of his preaching there.

“I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints and for this reason, I do not cease to give thanks for you…”

He praises them for the faith and their love and he offers them a clear idea of what he prays for--- that they will be filled with a spirit of wisdom and revelation as they come to know Christ. And that is the same praise and prayer today! It is about our faith in our Lord Jesus and our love for one another.

And then he uses a phrase that is truly amazing

“so that, with the eyes of the heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe…”

(Ephesians 1: 18-19)

Can it be said any better?… That church is a community that sees things with the heart and knows what works in spite what the world may say--- namely, that God calls us to a hope that will never fail no matter how down or unsure or even shattered we may feel at certain points in our lives. November’s “O- Magazine” has as it theme—Hope and cover has this line:

“HOPE- JUST WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST! --- INSPIRING STORIES AND BILLIANT STRATEGIES” YOU BET!!!!!

That God blesses richly both spiritually and materially those who are poor or poor in spirit and those riches shine among the shadows and even in the midst of the darkness.

And ultimately, it is all about the immeasurable power of God--- that even says to death that even though we may have grief, it has no victory--- for we are Christ’s resurrection people that is alive now in life – in this world and in the next!

Oh, yes, its play 13 for us--- for we know it is the correct call even though so many may say that we are not right!

And that is why we sing—“Now Thanks We All Our God.”

Amen